Marni Wishart Photography

Having been raised in Utah, a deep appreciation for the great outdoors — for mountains, lakes, great big colourful skies, the desert, and the vast variety to be found in our world — is fundamental to who I am. I was raised with the belief that Family is Forever, and that nothing is more important. Adding to this, from an early age, creating art became my passion. My earliest memories are of fingerpainting at the kitchen table! Soon, I was enrolled in private art lessons where I was to begin each day by scribing “I am an artist” over and over again to fill a full page. The impact this has had on my life is indescribable, and in my unquenchable thirst for learning, I now hold three degrees including studio art, art history/museum studies, and graphic design. These pursuits have led me to make Virginia, and now Texas, my home.

Nature. Family. Art. These are the influences I bring to photography.

If you spend some time with me, you will quickly learn avocados are my love language, I am a huge fan of the acai bowl, the Buddha bowl, and a full bowl of guac all to myself. Besides eating fresh, I practice yoga, pilates, and I run. Traveling is one of my favorite things to do, my bucket list is full of all.the.places! I love my family something fierce and cannot think of a better career and purpose than to work with clients who are also deeply in love with one another!

Marni Wishart Photography

Having been raised in Utah, a deep appreciation for the great outdoors — for mountains, lakes, great big colourful skies, the desert, and the vast variety to be found in our world — is fundamental to who I am. I was raised with the belief that Family is Forever, and that nothing is more important. Adding to this, from an early age, creating art became my passion. My earliest memories are of fingerpainting at the kitchen table! Soon, I was enrolled in private art lessons where I was to begin each day by scribing “I am an artist” over and over again to fill a full page. The impact this has had on my life is indescribable, and in my unquenchable thirst for learning, I now hold three degrees including studio art, art history/museum studies, and graphic design. These pursuits have led me to make Virginia, and now Texas, my home.

Nature. Family. Art. These are the influences I bring to photography.

If you spend some time with me, you will quickly learn avocados are my love language, I am a huge fan of the acai bowl, the Buddha bowl, and a full bowl of guac all to myself. Besides eating fresh, I practice yoga, pilates, and I run. Traveling is one of my favorite things to do, my bucket list is full of all.the.places! I love my family something fierce and cannot think of a better career and purpose than to work with clients who are also deeply in love with one another!

IF I HAVE A FREE SUNDAY I WOULD SPEND IT… relaxing with my family. If the weather is nice, then sunning myself by the pool or, even better on the beach, it's definitely my happy place.

MY MOST MEMORABLE TRAVEL EXPERIENCE WAS… my summer abroad in France as a college student. As an art major, it was a dream come true to paint in fields of giant sunflowers, to soak up the rich architectural history all around me, and to see - for the first time in person - all the famous works of art I had studied. (Second to that, let me throw in Kaua’i just a few years ago with my family! The.most.beautiful.place! I nearly cried when it was time to leave).

THE COUNTRY I MOST WANT TO VISIT IS… at the moment (because I really want to see the whole world, but I am pacing myself!!) is Italy! When asked if I have been to Italy, I often reply that I’ve had lunch in Italy, which sounds kind of funny - as if I traveled all that distance just for lunch. I mean, who wouldn’t, right? The rest of the story is that we were driving through the Alps and wound up on the Italian side in a tiny little town where we found delicious eats for our “hangry" selves, then it was back to the road. This summer, I will be traveling through cities and towns all over Italy -both for work and for play. Of course, I am going for photography and I’m excited about some collaborations I have lined up, but it’s also a bit of a family history trip where we will be visiting the town that bears my grandfather’s name. A name that was lost to our family for close to 100 years after an untimely death, an adoption under a foster name, and to top it off - the courthouse holding the records burning down. Maybe we will find some long lost distant cousins!

WHAT I LOVE MOST ABOUT MY JOB IS… the people it brings into my life — the glimpse it gives me of how other people love one another. While it can be easy to think love can be categorised … romantic love, parental love, sibling love, puppy love, etc.… I find that each couple and each family has their own truly unique way of showing love and it’s inspiring to me, that love is all the good things. In a world full of bad news, the good news is right here with us — surrounding us and, by contrast, just not getting front page headlines. I consider it a gift to be one who witnesses on behalf of love in its myriad of forms.

IF I DIDN’T DO THIS FOR A JOB I WOULD DO … what I was before this job: an artist, an educator — enjoying my niche amongst the halls of art museums. It’s a life I never thought I would leave, but mommy-hood has a way of diverting your path. Of course, if I had to choose a new life altogether… running a juice hut on a tropical island sounds really dreamy.

IF I COULD GIVE NEWLY ENGAGED COUPLES ONE PIECE OF ADVICE IT WOULD BE… to focus on one another and forget about feeling the pressure to please everyone. There is no other day in your life that is more truly all about you than your wedding day, so soak it in - do the things that make the two of you the happiest, make your wedding day about the things that matter to you! Also, by all means, invest in beautiful photographs!

I LOVE WHERE I LIVE BECAUSE… we have some serious “team spirit” as I like to call it! Not originally from Texas, I can say there is just something so amazing and contagious about loving and appreciating where you live, which Texas has in spades. It also seems the Houston alligator population is a little less aggressive than their Floridian cousins.

IF I COULD LIVE ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD IT WOULD BE… a place that always has amazing, warm weather. I love sunshine and nice weather. I would never tire of summer! Somebody, please, tell me where that place exists!

MY FAVOURITE MOVIE IS? I don’t know if I could choose just one. I love so many movies! I grew up going to double features with my parents (and sometimes we would stay for another double feature to make a day of it! Popcorn was considered a full meal, especially if you got a giant pickle to go with it). I'm named after a movie (Marnie, which is spelled differently than my name, but my Mom swears by her life that when she saw it in the theater it was spelled Marni), and my own little family has carried on our generational love of movies. A few in the line up of my eclectic favorites: mostly anything by Baz Luhrman, Elf (hahahaha, I can quote the entire movie), Enchanted, Say Anything, pretty much all of John Hughes’ movies - we have been bonding with our two teenagers re-watching all of these this past year, along with lesser known flicks like Brick. I also love The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Pride.Prejudice.Zombies, Elizabethtown, Knight and Day, and who doesn’t love The Notebook? Somebody stop me here, I could go on for days. I gave up scary movies because they creep me out too much, and too much “action scene” sequence and cgi make my eyes glaze over. I appreciate a movie about “feeeeelings.”

MOST MEMORABLE MEAL I’VE EVER EATEN WAS… memorable in a good way, or a bad way? The bad was tripe (eww.) The good … I’m a self-proclaimed açaí bowl aficionado - I go out of my way to find them wherever I travel. Blue Bowl in Los Angeles and Juicewell in Houston are my top two so far. Also, the Buddha bowl style "I am Humble" Bowl at Cafe Gratitude is my little piece of Heaven. I have to admit, when a wedding has a fruit tray and an undressed salad, I am beside myself with joy!

THE PETS I OWN ARE… two outdoor kitties, Lucky and Bella. I have a terrible allergy, but Bella keeps me company at the kitchen window and Lucky is always catching snakes and mice in the yard. I’ve never seen two happier or well adjusted cats.